Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest
- Thread starter eaglejarl
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- naruto rationalist romance armageddon is looking better and better damn you kishimoto explosions everywhere explosives solve everyone if in doubt surrender to the mercy of zabuza it seemed like a good idea at the time looks like a really bad case of being a jōnin my god. where does the lore end? precommitting is the winning plan screaming in kagome screw the rules i have explosives something bad might still happen sometimes you gotta sociopath stabby zabby subsection c of paragraph 9 should include we can weaponize this so hard
Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Well, he sat in the hokage's chair to give us our assignments. Not 100% on that though, which we probably should be.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Sure she does. Team Uplift repeatedly addressed him as "Lord Hokage" in her presence, and she saw that he didn't object. Later on, she corrected herself when she started to think of him as "Jiraiya-sama" instead of "the Hokage."
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Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Sorry; I was saying I didn't know, not that no one didn't
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Nothing to be sorry for. You had a question, I had the answer, I gave you the answer. Information flow is what makes our species strong, no?
Speaking of, I've been reading @eaglejarl 's story "Slivers in the Chaos Lands," and I'm a little puzzled as to why Regina and friends even want the Library of Alexandria. I mean, certainly it's cool as a historical curiousity, but it's not like the Library would actually have any information that we don't already have in much better forms, is it?
Sorry for the detour.
I would suggest a different tack for dealing with Minami's desire for Kagome not to get off with a "slap on the wrist." Instead it would likely be a better idea to focus on the fact that a mission needs completing and that we don't actually have the capacity to punish Kagome. He's a jonin who we've seen fight small armies of ninjas on his own, kill dozens of them, and come out unscathed. Like it or not, nobody there is capable of making Kagome do anything that Kagome doesn't want to do. We're currently on a mission in need of completion; better to just finish the mission as quickly as possible and let the Hokage (and his Clan Head) deal with this. Not that what you have there isn't a good point, but there are practical considerations as well, and they should likely be included.
Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Nah, I was apologizing for being unclear in what I was saying, not for asking a question.
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
As far as the historical library, you're absolutely right. As a Magic: the Gathering card, Library of Alexandria rules the school. Not only does it give you mana (which Regina desperately needed) but it lets you draw more cards.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Ah. Thanks, that explains that, then. (I know nothing about Magic: The Gathering, but I'm really enjoying your story.)
There does need to be a come-to-Jesus moment with Kagome, though. He substituted his judgment for the team's, and deliberately did it the way he did because he knew the others would disagree with him. The last time he did that he got Mari badly injured- almost killed, and the whole team stuck in a cave. This time it wasn't even a heat-of-the-moment crisis decision. He's supposed to have already learned this lesson.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
What is a come-to-JC moment? What does that idiom mean?
Kalkin
(╯ ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ╯︵ ┻─┻
- Location
- AK
Urban Dictionary: come to jesus
Getting called on the carpet, dressed down, or otherwise chewed out in a severe manner. Usually used in conjunction with "meetin'" (meeting)
Originally an emotional experience that is life changing, it has evolved to mean a serious argument, one that better result in a change of action or else.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Ah, thank you. Yes, certainly we're beyond the "getting chewed out" stage. Kagome needs to be controlled, for his own good and the good of the people around him, including Team Uplift, to whom he is deeply loyal in a demented way. Only Jiraiya has the power to do that, so to Jiraiya he must go.
Is execution on the table? Yes, of course it is, though it would be a pity and a waste.
When I say that it would be a waste, by the way, I mean that it would be a waste of his knowledge and skills, though possibly at this point the only way to secure the lives of basically everyone around him. (Since he's in love with Mari-sensei, who is now Jiraiya's wife, his potential jealousy of Jiraiya might make this outcome inevitable anyways.)
Of course, from a quest perspective, it wouldn't actually be a serious loss to us at this point, as we have Jiraiya and the entire resources of Leaf to draw upon to continue Hazo's sealing training. We'll all have a good cry and life will go on.
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- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
It's when you sit down with someone for a really hard conversation that carries the implicit promise/threat of a major turning point. Examples include "I cannot live in this environment anymore. Either you stop drinking and go into rehab or I take the kids and leave" and "this company is going to fail unless you stop faffing around and start actually trying to sell the product."
Shikaku knew, and the other clan heads were aware of our presence last time (Jiraiya got a bunch of crap about us being a bad investment), so I can't image that the clan heads and other high ranking members in their clans aren't aware that we're the Cold Stone Killers. They haven't spread that information around I imagine, but it's not exactly a clan secret at this point. Further, we'd be in Mist's bingo book as the CSK, so I can't imagine that other villages wouldn't find out the next time they get a Mist bingo book.
Is he? As I recall Mari actually took steps to make sure he wouldn't fall in love with her.
I still don't know why it's the "Cold Stone" killers, by the way. The expression is "stone cold".
"Cold Stone" is a chain restaurant where you can buy ice cream.
"Cold Stone" is a chain restaurant where you can buy ice cream.
It's because we promised ice to the proprietor of the resort in exchange for her cooperation. Ice = Cold Stone.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Unless she used a genjutsu to ensure that he wouldn't, which I don't recall that she did and am not sure is possible, I don't see how he wouldn't be. He was alone for fifteen years, safe but devastatingly lonely. He was then rescued by Team Uplift, headed by the incredibly beautiful and socially-adept Inoue Mari, who repeatedly used her sex appeal to calm him down when he was about to go ballistic. I don't see how else that could go but his being in love with her.
I imagine some people will protest that Mari-sensei and Jiraiya do not care about monogamy. I know that. Nevertheless, if I am right that Kagome is in love with Mari, I think that it is highly probable that at some point he tries to betray Jiraiya as his competition--humans have been doing stuff like that as far back as there have been humans. (Betrayal in his case would, of course, mean turning Jiraiya into pink mist.)
I think that with Team Uplift's admission as Leaf Ninja, Mari-sensei's marriage to Jiraiya, and Team Uplift's establishment as Team Jiraiya, Kagome has gone from being a critically important asset--the only one that could teach Hazo seals--to pure liability.
He's a danger to the entire team, he serves no useful function, and the sooner he's gone, the better.
I thought it's because Hazo used MEW--cold stone--to squish a jonin and bring down the inn, killing however many other people.
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Mari is a jonin level infiltration and seduction expert. She knows not only how to make someone fall for her, but she knows how to ensure someone doesn't fall for her. I don't recall the exact chapter, but she stated she was using enough sex appeal to calm Kagome down when needed but not enough that he'd fall in love with her.
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
Eh, maybe. I doubt that it's possible to fine-tune such a thing in that way, but maybe it's possible in the Narutoverse, MfD version.
You know, in the broad view I'm sure that Hazou isn't the first thirteen year old in ninja history with a big mouth and little of discretion. Normally clans probably address that by not telling kids that young any clan secrets. I kind of wonder if even the QMs don't sometimes forget how young Hazou actually is. (Not a huge criticism; that's easy to do!) Like, consider this Minami POV:
I mean, yeah part of that is that she wants to believe, but he's also a kid. Even in the 'grow up fast' ninja world, you can't trust kids with secrets.
That's some pretty cold bullshit right there. People are tools to be kept around as long as they're useful and then discarded when they become inconvenient?
I mean, yeah part of that is that she wants to believe, but he's also a kid. Even in the 'grow up fast' ninja world, you can't trust kids with secrets.
That's some pretty cold bullshit right there. People are tools to be kept around as long as they're useful and then discarded when they become inconvenient?
Raxner
The most dangerous man in an empty room
- Location
- Israel
I knew someone would say that--I was just wondering who.
Answer: In-world Kagome is a person, and Hazo would never think such a thing, nor should he. To me, as a reader of the quest? He's not a person, he's a fictional character, and a fictional character that no longer serves a useful purpose in the story.
Also, I don't want him gone just because he's no longer useful. I mean, gone from the story, sure, but retirement'd be good for that. I want him gone because he's dangerous. He already nearly ended us one chapter ago, Akane rightly pointed (pre-retcon) out that having him around is like walking a tightrope over disaster, and disaster will certainly happen again.
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That. The problem here is that he might interpret this as his decision just being disapproved of, or not appreciating the sheer severity of what he really did wrong. Akane laid it out for him with, "Killing a team member is betraying the team", but only got a grunt of acknowledgement. It's the old saying that your behavior becomes cheating the moment you do something you don't want the other person to find out about. The issue wasn't that he reacted with absurd overkill- heck, that's why we love him- it's that from his explicit admission in the first draft and easily inferred indicators in this one he did it by substituting his own judgement for the team's because he didn't trust them not to be soft. That is unfaithfulness. That is betrayal. It needs to be hammered home that not being able to trust him is the one thing that can possibly get him kicked. Worse, it's not the first time it has happened, and the last time he did it he got the woman he loves more than anyone else in the world severely injured- nearly killed, and everybody he cares about trapped in a cave with a waning oxygen supply. This all needs to be made crystal clear. This is not a "grunt of acknowledgement" situation. This is a, "Kagome sobbing on the ground begging not to to be exiled", situation. He needs to learn.
Hazou should probably take the chance to shed a few tears, too. He did it through the carelessness of not having been raised as a Clan ninja rather than deliberately substituting his judgement over the others', but the situation does exist in the first place because of a mechanically similar screw-up on his part.
Ideally, Minami will be left looking at the collective breakdown and unable to decide between killing everybody, or starting some sort of group hug. We put the "fun" in "dysfunctional".
"Love" is a complicated subject with many facets. Romantically, he seems to be completely non-functional or at least suppressed. -but, he also seems to be crazy devoted to her.
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Well, she's a highly charismatic team leader, so high devotion isn't that unusual. Especially when you consider all the shared danger the team has been in.
- Location
- The Maple Syrup Mountains
Even if we take that we're better off without Kagome now, we can't just vanish him and have the team forget about him. Our bonds of loyalty mean that killing/exiling Kagome would be severly damaging to the team's morale and mental state. It being cold is much more than just the real-world moral implications, it's what happens in-story when we try to get Hazou to kill his beloved sensei simply because he's inconvenient.
Add on that I feel we can keep Kagome around without disaster, and the objective value a skilled sealmaster is to Leaf, and I am firmly on the side of keeping Kagome around even before the ties I personally hold to his character.